Year 6 - Science - Building Robots

This term, the children in Year 6 have been learning about electricity in their Science lessons. 

The children built upon their prior learning of of electricity from Year 4, by revisiting components, how they are represented within a circuit diagram and the role they play in a wider, functioning circuit.

Year 6 enjoyed exploring the differences between cells and batteries, and series circuits to parallel circuits. However, after identifying different parts of a circuit, the children were given the final task of building a robot.

Equipped with a cup, pens, wires, motor, propeller, cell and some tape, the children began building their own electronic writing device. This was a brilliant way for the children to put their knowledge of electricity into a practical investigation - a child from Linden exclaimed that they if they wanted to  "[..] do this investigation again, before we break up for the half term!"

Some electronic devices worked within the first go of constructing the robot, others did not. However, Year 6 took this as an opportunity to not be deflated at the disappointing result, but rather to think along the lines that most physicists do - if we were to do this again, what variable would we change? What could I do to ensure a different result next time?

Please enjoy some pictures from our robot building lesson! 

Year 6 - Science - Burglar Alarms

To further develop Year 6's understanding of electricity and circuits, the children had another practical lesson this term. The objective was to construct a burglar alarm!

Before doing so, the children learnt what a burglar alarm is and how modern alarms that are used in our buildings work. Burglar alarms require a disturbance of an infrared light (which is not visible to the human eye), which will then trigger the alarm to sound.

While we did not have infrared light at hand for the children (much to their dismay), we explained that a working burglar alarm could still be made by constructing a switch and attaching a protected item (fake coins from the Maths area) to it. If the protected item was taken, the switch would close, thereby allowing voltage to flow across the whole circuit completely and enabling the buzzer to sound off. 

By constructing an open circuit alarm,  the children's burglar alarm would only produce noise when the item was taken. 

The children really enjoyed this practical lesson and it was a prime opportunity for them to explore how devices that protect them, such as burglar alarms and fire alarms, work. Additionally, it was a prime opportunity for the children to explore the significance of a closed switch in a circuit - specifically because they were able to make their own (using aluminium foil, a peg and some cardboard).

After completing their burglar alarms and testing how it functioned by 'stealing' protected items from the circuit, the children drew circuit diagrams and wrote about their findings in their books. Well done, year 6, for creating some efficient burglar alarms!